Quote:
Originally Posted by mikemo6string
Hi folks,
I've recently gone back to playing in an electric trio. I've played acoustic guitar exclusively for the last quarter century. It's a 3 month theater gig, and I'm using borrowed gear. A 1978 Telecaster and a very heavy Music Man amp. It's been pretty fun, and I'm still working on lightening up my claw of a left hand.
Anyway, I'm interested in getting myself an electric and an amp. Yes, it's been a lot of fun, and I'm feeling the love of the band sound again. I've played a few different guitars, which only muddies the waters for me. I don't want anything too heavy (the Tele is a little too heavy, though I do like it). Semi hollow, or even hollow body, perhaps. I play mostly bluesy, funkier stuff... I like the JJ Grey tone. Any thoughts on guitars out there? I'd like to keep the budget between 500-1000.
I know my way around guitars pretty well, but not amps. That Music Man amp that I'm using is way too heavy for me, and I'd like a relatively small amp that I can experiment with.
I've checked out the older posts, and would appreciate any thoughts out there.
Cheers,
Mike in NH
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Music Man made some good amps. What about the weight is cramping your style right now? That might help us understand what you're looking for. And the Fender Princeton (already mentioned) and it's clones and re-issues is classic small amp that can sound great. There are a lot of good small tube amps around today too (much wider selection than 20 years ago!).
When you mention light and "experiment with" there's something to be said for the current modeling amps. Opinions about the validity of their sound and playing feel vary, but they are an inexpensive way to "window shop" a lot of different types of sound. But you many mean "experiment" as in easy to carry in one hand so I can see what it's like to play out at various locations.
Not all Telecasters are heavy, many are very light. I have a Tele Thinline that I sometime thinkweighs less than some guitar straps.
Many semi-hollowbodies (ES335 and the like) outweigh typical Telecasters. I like my Epi 339 (smaller body semi-hollowbody), and it's not overly heavy. I have the model with the P90 pickups, which are an interesting sound.
Gretsch Electronmatics are a
great deal in your price range. I've not tried any funk on mine--but you know, it just might work. I'm not hip to JJ Grey, so I don't know.